The Man With Two Souls
by RedNovaDragon00
Summary: I expected a lot of things when I died. Heaven, Hell, maybe even reincarnation, but definitely never expected to wake up in another world sharing a body with the headmaster of an academy for monster hunters. Now I have to run a school for hormone-filled super-powered teenagers and make sure they don't somehow kill each other, all while pretending to be someone else. Lucky me, huh?
1. Out of This World

**A/N: Here's the first chapter of a new story that I've been working on that i'm still not sure that i'm satisfied with.**

 **I do not own RWBY**

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 **Chapter 1: Out of This World**

White.

That was all that I could see.

I could barely even remember what had happened, I remembered...I couldn't remember anything at all about what had happened actually.

What can I remember? I'm a male, I'm 5'11 I think, I have three friends Brian, Chris and…Liz. I'm too tired to remember anything else right now.

"Come on man," said a distant, distorted voice, they sounded worried "Get up, you can't be-."

I couldn't tell if they stopped talking or if I just stopped being able to hear them

Am I dying? That would certainly explain things.

The sound of screeching tires echoed throughout the white vastness before a crashing sound occurred.

Is that what happened? I got hit by a vehicle?

I don't want to die.

Nobody _wants_ to, I guess.

 _ **Is that so.**_

I was startled by the sudden speech.

Well, nothing had spoken, but the words had appeared in my mind.

It hadn't been a question, but I responded anyways. As best as some, probably disembodied, soul could.

Yeah, That's so.

"Back up, I said back up!" Echoed a different voice, "...He isn't breathing!"

I could hear what sounded like a young woman sobbing in the distance.

 _ **Good. Hold onto that idea, for it shall serve you well in this world.**_

Before I could ask what that meant, the whiteness was suddenly replaced with blackness and my eyes slowly opened.

I winced slightly as light reached my eyes, immediately rubbing them to ease the discomfort.

After my eyes had adjusted, I observed my surroundings. I seemed to be inside either a clock tower or a very fancy office, the ceiling above was filled with numerous gears, the room was various shades of green and was rather spacious. Looking behind me, I saw that the back wall was a large window.

Looking behind me made me realize that I had been sitting behind a desk the entire time, the top of the desk was see through, revealing gears under it, the frame of the desk was made of metal.

I jumped slightly as something collided with the floor next to me. As I examined what had fallen, I saw that it was a cane with an ornate white handle, everything after the handle being black.

Wait a minute, I died, didn't I?

Then...why am I here, how am I here? Having a near death experience is one thing, but waking up sitting behind an office desk is completely out of the ordinary.

I turned back and forth a few, discovering that the chair I was sitting in was like one of those common office chairs where the seat could turn. Spinning around, I faced the window, it was nighttime, a courtyard was revealed far below where the office was, a large city situated far beyond the courtyard. As I looked up, my eyes widened as I gazed at the moon.

It would have looked like any other moon, if it wasn't for the fact that there was a gigantic crater formed in the side of it, pieces of the moon floating outwards from it.

What the hell happened to the moon?

The surprises didn't end there either. That would just be boring wouldn't it?

Staring back at me was the reflection of a man that seemed to be in his thirties or forties. He had semi-short, disheveled white hair, pale skin, and brown eyes, a pair of small black glasses decorating his face. He seemed rather tall despite sitting down, definitely over six feet tall, and he was dressed in an immaculate suit consisting of a green scarf, a black suit jacket over a buttoned-up vest and green undershirt, dark-green pants, and black shoes.

Is this what reincarnation is? No, that's not right, I'd have been reborn as a baby or a plant, and I definitely wouldn't remember being someone else, right?

That brings up another question, who's body am I in and why?

 _That is the question, isn't it?_

I was startled by the sudden voice, looking around the empty room for who had spoke, "Who said that?"

Wow, that voice is a lot different than mine.

 _Look at the window again, if you'd please._

I nodded hesitantly before complying, staring at the window once more, "What am I supposed to be looking at, all I see is the outside and my reflection."

 _I believe that's_ my _reflection actually,_ said the voice, the reflection's mouth moving to match the words.

Oh.

Oooooh.

' _Oh' indeed, young man, but back to the question at hand, how did this happen?_

Wait, you can hear my thoughts?

 _We do occupy the same body at the moment after all._

But… how is this possible? I died.

The reflection's face turned somber at that news.

 _I see, it's always a shame when the young die, but that still didn't explain why you're in control of my body._

I… I'm sorry but I don't have any idea how, this is all so surreal.

I heard the man sigh in exasperation.

 _Can you remember anything important at least?_

I tried to think back on what had happened to me, but I couldn't remember anything that transpired other than my death.

I'm drawing blanks here.

 _You too? I can't remember anything that happened today up until this moment._

That's strange, I can remember pretty much anything else.

 _As can I, but unfortunately, with no memory of what happened or any idea on how to fix this, we seem to be stuck together._

I sighed, now speaking out loud "I was afraid you'd say that, so what's your name?"

 _My name is Ozpin, pleased to meet you._

"That's a cool name, my name is...I...I can't remember my name actually."

 _That is concerning, is there anything else you can't remember?_

"I'm pretty sure that I remember everything else, Ozpin"

 _Well we do need something to call you…, how about Vadovas, Vas for short?_

"Sounds good, Vadovas it is, not like I could do any better."

 _We'll figure this situation out together, Vas._

"I hope so."

"But I do have a question though."

 _Yes?_

"What happened to the moon?"

 _Whatever do you mean? It has always been like that._

That can't be right. The moon had always been in one piece where I'm from, if it's shattered now then that could mean many things…

"Ozpin, what's this planet called?"

 _Remnant._

"Remnant? Not Earth?"

 _Are you suggesting what I think you're suggesting?_

"Well the Moon from Earth definitely isn't shattered like that."

 _So not only are you a dead soul possessing my body, but you are from a different world entirely? Fascinating, if not entirely unbelievable._

"I know it is, but this definitely isn't my world."

 _You're taking this surprisingly well. Most people would have suffered a breakdown of some sort._

"To be honest, I'm more focused on the fact that I'm still alive than the fact that I'm in a different world."

 _Understandable, death is not a thing most people are willing to accept for themselves, especially if they're a young man such as yourself._

'How'd you know that I was young?'

 _I… don't know,_ he said, sounding perplexed, _I just did._

"This just opens up several more questions, but I guess it's no use worrying about them at the moment, so what now?"

 _Well, since you are the one in control of my body, you will have to take care of my duties._

"Duties? What exactly do you do?"

 _I am the headmaster of the academy that you are in the office of._

Of all people for me to possess it had to be a headmaster, "And what is it that you teach here?'

 _Most of the classes at Beacon, that's the name of the academy by the way, are what you'd find at any normal school. But Beacon Academy is mainly a school designed to train hunters, elite warriors who combat monsters known as grimm._

I slumped backwards against the chair I was sitting in, running a hand through my hair as I released a worried sigh.

"And that creates a big problem, you sound pretty important, how am I going to be able to pass as you in any interactions?"

 _It is indeed a problem, but the next semester does not begin for a few months. Until you understand how to pretend to be me, all you have to worry about is interacting with the staff. Though, as of now, that will have to be kept to a minimum, the staff knows me better than anyone else._

"Can't we just stay in your office until I get the act down?" I responded as I got up from the chair I was in.

 _There is no telling how long that could take, plus you'd need sustenance and the professors, unfortunately, would check up on me if I didn't come out at least every once in awhile._

I groaned in annoyance before attempting to walk to the other side of the desk. I say ' attempting' because I immediately tripped over my own feet and fell to the floor. I probably would have smashed my face into the ground if I hadn't put my arms in front of me.

 _Are you alright, Vas?_

"I think so," I said as I pushed myself up and once again tried to walk and ended up tripping over myself again.

"Why can't I walk right?"

 _Hm, well I don't actually need to use the cane, so it must be something on your end of the spectrum of problems._

"Oh now that's just great," I say as I pull myself up using the desk and prop myself against it, "It feels like i'm tripping over myself constantly."

 _How tall were you when you were alive?_

"I think I was somewhere around 5'11, why?"

 _I'm 6'7, your balance must be off because of the height difference._

"Holy sh-, are all people in this world that tall?" I said, surprise evident in my voice.

 _Not exactly, but it's around the average for most male adults._

"I don't think I've ever met someone that was that tall in my entire life."

 _Really? The average height for your planet must be quite lo-,_ Started Ozpin, before being cut off when the door at the opposite end of the room dinged, _Get back in the chair, right now. Don't stop to ask questions._

I complied as quickly as I could, balancing myself using the desk and sitting back down in the chair behind the desk. As I propped the fallen cane back up against the desk, the door slid open, apparently having been an elevator door if the room behind it were any indication.

Stepping out of the elevator was a blonde woman, seemingly in her late 20's or early 30's. She had green eyes, wore a thin set of glasses over them, and wore what vaguely resembled a stereotypical female teacher get up aside from the cape she was wearing. She was looking down at some kind of tablet-like device, swiping across it with her fingers every once in awhile as she walked over to the desk before she began speaking, "Professor Ozpin, I've gathered the first year applications, all that is left is for us to look through them."

Uuh, any advice, Ozpin?

 _Try not to expose us to Glynda and we'll probably be perfectly fine. I hope._

Oh joy.

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 **A/N: And that's the end of this chapter. Will Vas be able to keep his cool, will Glynda see through his panic-laced act? Maybe.**


	2. The Good Witch

**A/N: Welcome back to The Man With Two Souls and another chapter that im not too sure im satisfied with. Apologies for the longer than intended wait for anyone that actually cares that it took so long, losing the want to write sucks.**

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 **Chapter 2: The Good Witch**

'This is not good. This is _anything_ but good.'

 _I agree that this situation is very...unfortunate,_ said Ozpin calmly, _but panicking will only make it worse._

'I get that, I really do,' I thought to Ozpin, trying my best to keep myself inner panic from showing itself to Glynda, who was now standing next to me as she continued swiping through that tablet thing, probably finishing up organizing those applications she talked about earlier,'but that doesn't mean I can help it.'

 _I'll try and help you where I can, but anything I help you with relies solely on your acting skills._

'Oh then we're here for a grand old time here, now aren't we? Who is she anyways?'

 _Her name is Glynda Goodwitch, she is the combat instructor for Beacon as well as my assistant._

I glanced down at the desk, Ozpin's reflection staring back at me from the surface of it, 'Alright, so that just makes this situation even worse since she probably interacts with you the most.'

Before Ozpin could respond, Glynda began speaking again as she placed the tablet onto the desk, a hologram depicting rows of pictures with names next to them appearing in the middle of the room, "This is the roster of applicants that we have gathered for this year, most of which are rather promising."

I silently took a deep breath as I slid the tablet over to me, tapping on the topmost icon on the list while forcing a small smile onto my lips, "Well, let's get started shall we?"

The few hours that followed that question consisted largely of accepting or denying applications, while Ozpin spoke up every once in awhile to tell me his decision or to quickly brief me on the small things in the applications like 'dust' and 'aura'. I probably would have jumped joyfully when we came to the final applicant if it weren't for the facts that I couldn't balance right or that now was a really bad time for breaking character.

Some of the applicants really were impressive. Top students, tournament champions, there was even the heiress to some big-name company buried in there somewhere. I stretched my fingers lightly before thinking to Ozpin, 'Your school is pretty prestigious, huh?'

 _Indeed,_ said Ozpin, his reflection on the table nodding, a small hint of pride in his voice, _Beacon Academy is one of the most prestigious hunter academies on Remnant._

'Great,' I thought, rolling my eyes, 'As if I didn't think you were important enough before.'

 _Being the headmaster of an academy such as Beacon is indeed an important position,_ Ozpin agreed, nodding slightly, _Speaking of Beacon, I believe we have one last applicant to look over._

I nodded slightly and tapped on the 'scroll', which is apparently what that tablet thing is called, pulling up the application of a person 'Jaune Arc'. For some reason when that name popped up, Ozpin began to frown lightly, as if he were perplexed by something. 'Something up, Ozpin?'

 _Very much so,_ He replied, cupping his chin thoughtfully, _Mister Arc's parents have trained a majority of their elder children, Jaune is not one of those children, in fact his parents have made it a point to not train him at all._

'So he's lying to get in?'

 _That is the most probable situation, yes,_ Said Ozpin, _But the Arc family also hails from a long line of hunters, why his family refused to train him is beyond me._

Whatever I was about to say next was abruptly cut off by Glynda, "Professor Ozpin? Are you alright?"

Ignoring the surprise I felt from the suddenness of the question, I responded, "Yes, i'm perfectly fine. Why do you ask?"

"You opened Mister Arc's file and then went quiet for quite some time, even longer than you did with the other applicants."

"I see," I responded, internally cursing at messing up like that, "I'm sorry to have worried you. I was just lost in thought, that's all."

She didn't look too convinced, but she relented anyways,"Have you come to a decision then?"

 _Jaune has no training to speak of, he would be at a severe disadvantage here if we accepted him._

Ozpin was right. Beacon is a school meant to continue hunter training, someone like Jaune _would_ be at a severe disadvantage but…

'What if...what if we gave him a chance to prove himself? He's from a line of heroes right?'

I had no idea what made me suggest that, for some reason it seemed like a good idea despite how stupid it actually was. To my surprise, Ozpin didn't immediately shoot down the idea.

 _You're suggesting that we accept his faked application and let him participate in Beacon?_

'Yes, after all, if he doesn't pass initiation then he can be sent right back home just like any of the others would.'

 _Hm, and what has made you suggest this idea?_

'He… he seems like the kind of kid that just wants to live up to the name. He has no training, yet he faked transcripts just to get in? It's stupid, idiotic, and dangerous. Like he has something to prove. So, why not give him that chance?'

I looked down at Ozpin's reflection, and, to my surprise, he actually had a small smile on his face, 'What's so funny?'

 _Nothing. It's just nice to know our thoughts are much alike._

'Wait, you were gonna let him in anyway?'

 _Yes, as you said, he deserves a chance to prove himself._

'You could have just said that instead of putting me through the wringer.'

 _I've got to have some sort of entertainment while unable to control my body. Anyway, I believe we were just about to accept Mister Arc's application?_

I nodded and pressed the button to accept Jaune's application. After doing so, I stretched and glanced outside the window behind me and saw that the shattered moon was hanging high in the sky. Turning back to Glynda I began speaking once more, "Well now that that's out of the way, I believe it's time to call it a night, wouldn't you say so, Glynda?"

She tried to act like she wasn't tired, but the slight yawn that escaped her mouth completely squashed that attempt, "I'd say so. I will resume preparations for the new year when I return in the morning then."

'Geez, is she some kind of workaholic?'

 _You could say that, yes._

As she entered the elevator, she bid good night and let the door shut behind her.

A few seconds passed by, the only sound in the room coming from the clock-like ticking that kept echoing through the room, before I let out a long and over exaggerated sigh while slumping back against the chair I was seated in.

 _Well at least that is over and done with, you did quite well at keeping calm, Vas._

"Trust me," I said, rubbing my temples, "If panicking wouldn't have blown everything, I would have done a lot of it. Besides, all I really had to do was make short comments and drink more coffee than I have in my lifetime. Seriously, what are you, a caffeine addict?"

' _Addict' is a rather crude word. I prefer to call myself a connoisseur of coffee._

"Call it whatever you like, but what are we supposed to do now?"

 _Well, now that Glynda is gone, I believe it would be prudent to familiarize yourself with the campus of Beacon._

"Yeah, one problem with that though. I can't even stand up straight."

 _Nobody should be around at this hour now that Glynda has left and there is quite a bit of time before anyone will be back on campus. You'll have plenty of time to work out your walking problem._

I suppressed a sigh as a grabbed Ozpin's cane in one hand and that damned coffee mug and stood up, shakily propping myself up with the cane, "This is just going to be lovely, I can already tell that my face will be kissing the floor more times than i'd like."

 _Come now,_ said Ozpin as I stepped into the elevator and leaned against one of the walls, pressing the down button on the elevator, _My aura should at least keep you from cracking open my skull when you fall._

I rolled my eyes at Ozpin's statement and pressed a button in the bottom left corner of the elevator's twelve different buttons, none of which were labelled mind you. So I just assumed it was set up like any other elevator keypad i've seen where the first floor was the bottom left button.

It didn't take long before the rather fancy elevator responded and began descending, shaking me slightly against the wall. I slightly stretched my arms as the metal box made its way to the ground floor, pondering the wealth of information that had been thrust upon me about this new world. Monsters, powers, souls, heroes, it was a lot to wrap my head around, but since i'm actually supposed to be dead, I think I can accept anything at this point.

But, even so, I couldn't help the slight child-like excitement I felt within me, a new world, monsters, super powers, badass heroes, and probably so much more that I haven't even been taught yet.

As the elevator doors slid open, I slightly stumbled out of the elevator and towards the front doors of the tower I'm in, allowing a small smile to cross my face as I placed my hand on one of them.

"Well...let's get started then."

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 **A/N: And there you have it, a shorter chapter than last one that was kinda rushed due to how long i've neglected working on it. But now that i've actually regained some sort of will to write i'll try to get the chapters worked on faster, maybe even throw in more stories, who knows.**


	3. Learning The Rounds

**A/N: And after several days of procrastination and Overwatch, chapter three is finally finished and ready to be posted.**

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 **Chapter 3: Learning The Rounds**

I looked out across the enormous courtyard as I exited the tower, taking time to admire the enormous surrounding area, saying out loud to Ozpin, "This place is huge, it must have cost a fortune to build."

 _The hunter academies of Remnant have been around for almost a century,_ Stated Ozpin, _They've expanded quite a bit since then and have gained almost unanimous support._

"Well," I started as I began walking once more, wobbling slightly every now and then as I tried to keep my balance, "Hunters seem to be very important in keeping everyone safe, it'd be a pretty bad idea to be against such a thing."

 _Not all see the hunter academies in the best of lights, sadly. Some believe they have too much influence._

"Well there's always gonna be a few people that disagree with something, so where to first?"

 _Indeed,_ Agreed Ozpin, _Now then, I believe we should start with one end and work our way down to the other. Don't worry about the interior of some of them at the moment, you can familiarize yourself with them later._

I nodded in agreement and began walking towards one end of the campus.

Needless to say, given how huge this place is and factoring in my current unbalance, this walk will take a while.

As I walked, I took the time to admire the scenery. The campus was practically a small city, several buildings of various sizes decorating its vast area. The darkness made it kind of serene actually, normally I'd find the dark unsettling in such a large area.

I came to a stop in front of a large, circular building. Banners hung across the front wall, the space in front of the building decorated with several benches, a path extending from the door to an intersection lined with street lamps.

"What's this place supposed to be?" I asked Ozpin.

 _This,_ started Ozpin, _Is Beacon's amphitheater, we typically use it for meetings and combat class. It's also closed at night, though I'm sure you already know what an amphitheater looks like, correct?_

"Yeah, just a big room pretty much."

 _Like I said, we can explore some of these buildings later. Let us continue on._

I turned around and resumed walking, Ozpin pointing out some of the buildings such as a dining hall and a ballroom. I swear, this is the most expensive and fancy place I've ever even looked at. The buildings are huge, the interiors are ornate, and I have the constant feeling that something will spontaneously become dirty if I so much as breathe at it.

Eventually I found myself standing inside of the student dormitories, thankfully I had gotten a bit more used to my new center of balance, so I shouldn't disturb anyone that decided to stay here over the break between semesters.

'So you said this is student dormitory, right?' I thought to Ozpin as I made my way up the steps in the foyer of the building.

 _Correct, I thought it would be most important for you to familiarize yourself with the student and academic areas of the campus._

'Alright then, I'll take a short look around this place and then make my way to the academic sections of the campus.'

I reached the top of the stairs and turned a corner, making my way down a hallway lined with doors, the floor covered in darkly colored carpeting. Lights lined the hallway's ceiling, blue coverings affixed to them. The lights were so dimmed currently that I almost didn't know they were on.

'This building seems pretty quaint,' I said as Ozpin directed me through the halls, leading me further up the building, 'Pretty large too, I saw quite a few of these buildings, how many students come here?'

 _Beacon Academy has quite the large number of students under its tutelage, each room is assigned to a four person team and some rooms are left open for guests to the academy._

'What kind of guests?'

 _A perfect example is the Vytal Festival, students from the four academies gather at a chosen kingdom every two years to test their skills against the other kingdoms' hunters-in-training. This year, Vale is where the event will take place._

'Sound exciting, super-powered teenagers all competing to see who's the best of the best, we had a similar event back where I came from, but I never really cared much about witnessing it,' I replied as I opened a door at the top of a stairwell, bringing me out to the roof as I began to speak out loud once more, "This world is definitely a lot more interesting than mine is and I haven't even seen anything beyond this campus yet."

I looked out from on top of the building, my eyes fixing on the large tower in the distance, the green glow at the top of it shining brightly in the night, like the academy's namesake.

 _This world has many things wrong with it, but I like to believe that the good outweighs the bad more often than not. Hunters exist to make this world safer, to make it better, and every day their lives are put on the line in the name of a better future for mankind._

"You put a lot of faith in these people, it's almost like a fairytale to me. Warriors that protect the innocent and slay monsters, and here I am in the body of one with no idea what to do but pretend to be them and hope nobody finds out and nothing goes wrong."

 _Sounds like quite a story don't you think? Don't worry too much about the possibilities of being found out, it'll only make it easier to mess up and besides, you've been doing a marvelous job of keeping yourself calm._

I sighed slightly as I turned around and began making my way back down to the entrance of the dormitory, 'If you say so, Ozpin. An outside opinion is usually better, so i'll have to take your word for it.'

I slowly made my way out of the building and began making my way towards the academic portions of the academy which basically just consisted of the classrooms and the library.

The long segments of walking gave me plenty of time to think over my situation. I'll probably never go home, I can't remember anything pertaining to me specifically, and I died.

But I wasn't experiencing any sort of negative feelings about it aside from confusion. I was fine, I was unaffected, apathetic even. I'm not much to get over emotional about things but I should have at least felt something, right? I died, the one thing everything fears, and ,emotionally, i'm not even scratched. I know I chocked it up to being relieved to be alive, but that can't really be an explanation for total apathy towards my own death, can it?

I shook my head, trying to clear my thoughts. I could still feel things, so that wasn't the problem I guess. I decided I could think more about it later as I arrived at my destination and let myself in.

'So this is where all the classes take place?' I asked Ozpin as I walked through the halls of the building.

 _Almost all of them, some of them take place in some of the other buildings around the campus but, for the most part, all of the classes are held in or around here._

I nodded in acknowledgement as I continued walking through the building's various and enormous halls. I don't think I've even heard of castles this big, let alone an academy.

'So what exactly gets taught here anyways?'

 _Quite a few of the 'normal' subjects, such as history, literature, math, etc., but we obviously also focus on teaching things oriented towards hunters like dust application, combat practice, grimm studies, and several other things that are essential to the growth of a hunter-in-training._

'Sounds fun, the hunter parts at least.'

 _I'd say that, for the most part, the students would agree with you,_ Said Ozpin as I kept walking down the hallway before stopping and looking at a door, _Is something wrong?_

'Not particularly,' I responded, before pointing to the door, 'The lights are on in that room, who's is it?'

 _Ah, that is Bartholomew Oobleck's room, he is the history teacher and is also quite the night owl._

'Night owl, huh?' I asked as I placed my hand on the door handle and opened up the door, 'Might as well get meeting him out of the way already.'

The first thing I noticed when I walked into the room? The center was a complete and utter mess. There were papers _everywhere_ , stacks upon stacks of papers on the floor, the desk in the middle, and another good number of them were pinned to what seemed to be a map of Remnant in the very back, several lines connecting them together like a web. To be honest, the paper on the map reminded me of one of those stereotypical 'conspiracy theorist' boards with pictures and stuff connected together on a wall.

And then there was the man that I assumed to be Oobleck. He was fast, one second he was on one end of the room and in the blink of an eye he was on the complete opposite end. His hair was green, messy, and swept back as if it had gotten stuck that way after a strong wind, he had large circular glasses on his face, a white shirt with the color raised that was half tucked into his dark green pants, and lastly...his shoes didn't match, the one on his right foot was black while the one on his left was brown.

I let the door close behind me, not bothering to slow it down to make it more silent so I could get his attention.

The door had just barely clicked closed before Oobleck looked over, taking a sip from a thermos I hadn't noticed a moment ago. Is everyone here a coffee addict?

"Ah, Ozpin! What brings you here at this time of night?" He said, but it came out so fast that it almost sounded like it was one word entirely.

I cleared my throat slightly, preparing myself for this conversation as I put on a slight smile, "I was making my way around the campus when I saw your light was on. I thought it'd be a good idea to check up on you."

"Ah yes, but your timing is stupendous," Exclaimed Oobleck, before he disappeared and reappeared with a few books in his hands, a few more littering the table suddenly, "I was just about to return these to the library, would you care to assist me?"

Well I don't really have a reason to say no, plus this is something Ozpin would probably do.

"I'd be glad to help," I replied as I made my way down the stairs to the desk, "These are quite a few history books, working on your curriculum I presume?"

The man nodded as I began stacking the books he wasn't holding into my hands, holding Ozpin's cane in between my arm and torso, "Quite right, the next semester is almost upon us after all.

Oobleck began leading the way out of the room after I finished gathering books, keeping a steady lead ahead of me as I continued the conversation "Indeed, in only a few short months these halls will be filled with students once more, old and new."

"Time passes quickly," Said Oobleck, turning a corner as we continued making our way to the library, "It feels like the semester ended only yesterday."

"No rest for the weary," I said as Oobleck opened up a set of doors, leading us into the library, "There is no shortage of work in our line of occupation."

"And I wouldn't change it for anything," Oobleck said, a sliver of pride leaking into his voice, "We do good work here, preparing the next generations of hunters to protect the world with the knowledge and understanding of their craft and the world around them."

My gaze lingered heavily upon the rows upon rows of enormous bookcases in this library. The place was amazingly huge, much like the rest of the campus. They probably had books for every subject in this place.

Oobleck led me down to a section of bookcases marked as a history section and began placing books back where they belonged, "These are a lot of books, when did you borrow them?"

"I believe it was about a week or so ago, i've already gone through everything I needed for the next semester so I'm returning them."

I handed some of the books off to Oobleck as he reached his hand out for them, continuing to place them in their spots, "Quite a lot of reading, did that extend to the several piles of papers littering your classroom?"

He cleared his throat awkwardly and continued talking, "Ah, yes, well I haven't gotten around to those yet, you see."

I gave another one of those small smiles, "Indeed I do, good luck with them then."

He nodded, placing the last book back in its proper spot, "Well that's the last of them, I believe it's time that I finally turn in for the night."

I nodded, "Have a good night then."

He returned the farewell before readjusting his glasses and zooming off.

 _Well that went rather nicely, if I do say so myself._

'Yeah, it really did,' I said as I looked through the bookcases once more before walking towards the exit, 'Someone could probably spend every day in here and never finish a fraction of these books.'

 _An over exaggeration, but also not far off._

I exited the library and began making my way back to Ozpin's office. My balance had been almost restored from all of this walking, so that's great.

Several moments later, I found myself back inside the tower's elevator, riding it back up to the office.

'Today was certainly eventful, it involved a lot of walking though.'

 _At least you've gotten a good bit of your balance back and you saw most of the campus._

'Yeah, that's true I guess." I said as the elevator opened and I walked back to Ozpin's desk, sitting down in the chair and propping his cane up against the desk.

I picked up the scroll that I left on the desk, opening it up to check the time.

2:37? Wow it's really late, but I don't feel all that tired amazingly, Ozpin must have a pretty good resistance to the call of sleep.

I leaned back in the chair, stroking a hand through my hair, "So what now, Ozpin?"

 _I believe now you should try and sleep, even if you don't feel it in my body, it still requires sleep every now and then._

I chuckled and nodded, looking around the room, "So, what, do you usually just pass out at your desk or something?"

 _That is my prefered sleeping area, yes. My job as headmaster usually keeps me very busy, so I never really bothered with finding a more comfortable place to sleep_

I took off Ozpin's glasses and placed them on the table, slowly closing my eyes, "Goodnight then, Ozpin."

 _Good night, Vas._

Sleep came surprisingly easy, within minutes I was out like a light.

Shortly after, I began dreaming...I think, it was pretty lucid for a regular dream.

My eyes opened and were met with a wide, grass covered landscape. The sun was hanging high in the sky above the vibrant grass, several decently sized trees dotting the surrounding area.

And then there was the house. It was tiny, more of a shack than a house, made of wood with a few large windows adorning the house, a metal pipe extended from one side of the roof, assumedly connected to some sort of stove or furnace on the inside. A fence surrounded the house partially, another fence was set aside from the house, surrounding a decently sized garden with numerous plants growing within it.

All in all, the place was simple, but it was still pretty nice. Certainly didn't keep me from letting out a whistle of admiration at least.

"What is this place?" I asked out loud, not really expecting an answer.

Which is why I almost jumped out of Ozpin's skin when I received one.

"A memory, forgotten by time." I looked around, taking me a moment before I spotted Ozpin walking towards me from the house.

He continued speaking, "But, more specifically, currently we are within a soulscape, a sort of inner world that hunters can access through meditation."

"And, speaking of souls, it seems that even yours doesn't remember what you look like."

I blinked in confusion, before looking around and spotting a puddle, using it to see my reflection.

It was a little creepy and a little cool a the same time, but all the disconcerting all the same. My entire body looked as if it were a shadow, no colors present but black, and my body seemed to still be in the shape of Ozpin's.

"What is this?"

"The soul usually remembers what the mind cannot, the fact that you haven't appeared in your actual form is...troubling."

"Yeah, I guess it really is." I said as I gazed at my pitch black hands, "Is there anything that can be done about this?"

He sighed, tapping his cane against the ground, "Like most aspects of our current situation, this is yet another thing that we cannot fix at the moment, the only theory I have is that your soul needs to refind itself or heal."

I groaned in annoyance before nodding, "And what does that mean?"

"Well, we have never had an instance of a dead soul latching onto living one, it is entirely possible that your soul is damaged, leading to the memory loss of both you and your soul, an extremely rare occurrence even in living beings."

"So, what, do we just wait for it to fix itself?"

"Despite terrible an idea that makes out loud, it is precisely what we will have to do, your soul latched onto mine in its final moments, perhaps the interconnection of our souls will heal yours in time. Though we will have no way of knowing the progression."

I nodded, "I guess we'll just have to wait it out then."

"Indeed, but I believe I have something we could do to pass time."

"Alright, what is it?" I said as he raised his cane up and pointed it at me, a shadowy replica materializing in my hands," Huh?"

He gave a small smile, "Training, it should help you gain better control over my body as well as prepare you for any danger that might pop up while you are in control of my body. We will do this inside the soulscape whenever possible."

"Sounds reasonable, if i'm going to be in your body I might as well learn to play the part of hunter."

"I thought you'd see it that way," He said, his stance completely relaxed as he gestured at me to get ready.

"I do hope you're prepared, Vas, I don't intend to go easy on you, we'll start slow."

Yeah, 'we'll start slow', says the leader of a group of super-powered monster slayers.

I'm going to regret this in the morning. I just know it.

* * *

 **A/N: And there goes another chapter of The Man With Two Souls, I'm going to try to work on chapters whenever i have time and try and get new ones finished on weekends.**


	4. Crossing Paths With a Black Cat

**A/N: And once more, after months of procrastination and finding out this chapter was going to be a lot longer than I thought it was going to be, it's finally here. Chapter 4, almost 6,000 words, i don't know whether to be impressed or drained. Either way, I hope you all enjoy this chapter of The Man With Two Souls.**

* * *

 **Chapter 4: Crossing Paths With a Black Cat**

"You're developing quite well," stated Ozpin, dodging another of my swings as he said so, "Your form still need quite a bit of work, but we've made great progress in this short time."

I nodded as Ozpin suddenly swung his cane at me, forcing me to block with my own, sending me back a few steps, "And yet I still feel like i'm being danced around, you're the headmaster for a reason, I guess."

I rushed forward, thrusting the shadowy cane at Ozpin numerous times, each one being deflected or straight out blocked as Ozpin responded, "That may be so, but you can't deny your progress, two weeks ago you couldn't even see my strikes, let alone block one."

A loud crack echoed through the soulscape as Ozpin sent my cane flying out of my hands and sailing into the air. I watched it spin rapidly before it crashed back down to eart-, I mean Remnant, and clattered across the ground.

"Be that as it may, you also still have a long way to go until you're skill has reached mine."

I'd say he was being cocky, if I didn't understand how true his statement was at least. He didn't pull any punches either, despite my initial utter incompetence at fighting. A fact I didn't know whether to be grateful or angry about.

A sigh escaped my lips as I shrugged, "How long did I last this time?"

"Seven minutes, quite the improvement."

Sure, the time was rather short, but considering my opponent...I think I can take satisfaction out of seven minutes.

I nodded, a smile making its way onto my face, "Well, we've pretty much gone at it repeatedly for two weeks now."

"Indeed, and you've grown quickly acquainted with my body in the meantime. Most likely thanks to the bond our souls share now."

I nodded once more, laying on the grass covered landscape, "Most likely, I've found myself reflexively doing things you said you usually do, as if second nature. Guess you're quite literally rubbing off on me."

"Essentially," Ozpin said, agreeing, "The human soul is complicated, most likely your soul is incorporating the knowledge of mine into it in order to protect itself."

I stood up, looking at Ozpin, "Alright, so now what?"

"Now," Said Ozpin as he turned around, "We are done tonight, even though we are in the soulscape, you will still require legitimate rest."

I stood up as the soulscape faded away from me, "See you in the morning then, Ozpin."

I was always disappointed when these sessions ended, they were legitimately fun, more fun than I think i've ever had before I died.

But, the period after the sessions were also...interesting, to say the least. I guess you could call them dreams, but they always seemed more like visions.

Usually I'd see the old shack of a house as the setting. Sometimes I'd see people, not the same people every time, but the most common ones were four young women and an old man.

The ones with them were always like a fairy tail. Four young women help an old and isolated man and he turns out to be a wizard and grants them his powers as thanks.

Sometimes I saw a young, white haired man, practicing fighting with a cane as a young woman watched him from a distance. This vision was probably the reason I've gotten so much better with Ozpin's cane.

But one thing occurred without fail every time. Things got dark, both literally and figuratively. I could hear screams of terror, the various shrieks, roars, and growls of what I could only assume were grimm. The tearing and shredding of flesh was echoing from all around me.

And then an ear splitting roar rumbled through the space along with the beating of giant wings. That's when the area became visible.

I was in a city, it was pretty old, almost medieval. Everything was completely trashed, rubble littered the streets, smoke rose from various places in the distance, and fire was everywhere.

"This again," I started, having gotten used to the sight of the tragedy by now, "Is anything going to be different this time?"

I began walking, exploring the demolished city, a stray grimm appearing every now and then, their masks decorated in the blood of the city's citizens.

They completely ignored me, like always. Whether they couldn't see me or just didn't care was unknown to me, I certainly didn't stick around and wait for them to change their debatably existent minds.

And then I arrived at the center of the city, no matter where I went, I always ended up here.

The center was probably beautiful before this attack, but it certainly looked like a complete wreck now. Several grimm littered the area, their bodies evaporating into nothing. They hadn't been dead for long. Shops lined the buildings around me, some were still standing, others were completely demolished. In the middle of the city's center was a small obelisk, a few feet taller than a grown man. At the base of the obelisk, was a man, bleeding profusely from a set of slash wounds on his chest onto the stone floor, he wore white armor, trimmed with gold. Next to him, on either side of his body, was a sword and shield, the sword was rather simple with a blue cloth covered hilt with a gold pommel and guard, the shield was rather nice looking, it was mostly white with the top portion being trimmed with gold, a symbol of what appeared to be a two crescent moons on it.

I approached the dying man, he had blonde hair and bright blue eyes that seemed to gaze on for miles. I knelt next to him, he was muttering in his blood-loss induced stupor, I could barely hear what he was saying and what I could hear was mostly incoherent.

The soon-to-be corpse looked around the center, before muttering his final words, coughing fits interrupting him every once in awhile, "I..i..i should have listened."

I bowed my head slightly, as his muttering became silent.

Usually, this is where the visions abruptly end and I wake up.

But something was different with this 'dream' this time. Instead of waking up, I was still in the town's center, but it must have skipped forward in time, since the grimm corpses had fully evaporated. I almost jumped when I noticed the large, blatant difference in the scenery. Emblazoned near the top of the obelisk in the center of the town was a large symbol.

It was red, vibrant red. The symbol looked a bit like a dream catcher to me, it held a sideways eye in the middle of it, numerous lines connecting it to what looked kind of like an unfinished compass rose with three points going north, west, and east, at the bottom of symbol were five gem-esque shapes that hung, as if suspended in the air, under the eye.

It stayed there for a while, as if watching my every movement. I stood still and waited for something, anything, to happen.

And then I started to hear whispering.

It was unintelligible to me, probably because it was so soft and quiet, so I couldn't hear it well enough to understand it. I guess that fact was made clear to the voice as well, because soon the whispering came to a stop. Soon after, the lines of the symbol began moving, receding into the eye until nothing but the eye was left, and then the eye closed, making the symbol completely disappear from sight.

I could finally feel myself waking up, the town fading only to be replaced by the sight of the back of my eyelids as I slowly opened them. Things were blurry for a few moments, but it eventually faded after I rubbed my eyes and blinked them a few times. I stretched, the bones in my spine popping as I cleared out the stiffness in them. I picked up Ozpin's glasses, put them back on and looked around the room, it was morning once more.

Those dreams are getting tiresome, same thing for two weeks straight. I'm both glad and disturbed by the change in ending. I'll keep them to myself for now and see what else I can figure out about this stuff. If I can figure out anything at all.

 _Good morning, Vas, sleep well?_

I stood up from the chair slowly as I replied, "Morning Ozpin, I slept pretty well, actually."

I could 'feel' Ozpin nod, something I discovered during the time we've been training, I can 'feel' certain actions or movements he makes, even though he technically has no body.

 _That's good,_ Said Ozpin as I grabbed his cane and made my way to the elevator, _And it seems that we have a clear schedule for today._

"Thank goodness," I said, releasing a sigh, "No signing papers or helping out around campus for a day."

 _A break every now and then is always nice, especially after many days of work._

"That's very true," I said as I set the elevator to go to the ground floor, "But some people just like to work and work and work."

I sensed a feeling of amusement from Ozpin as the elevator opened up at the bottom floor, _Not unlike several of the staff members at Beacon, wouldn't you say?_

"Well they certainly seem to love their job, can't fault them for that."

 _Indeed, they are some of the most devoted people I have ever met._

I nodded in agreement as I began making my way towards Beacon's dining hall. It was still pretty early in the morning, so a few of the students that stayed and a few teachers are probably there for breakfast.

I don't think I could have ever stood this much walking back in my old body, but Ozpin's body never broke a sweat. Our training sessions have really shown me just how much looks can deceive. Ozpin looked like any other human, but he's faster, stronger, more agile, etc. than any other human I think I ever knew, and he doesn't even put that much effort in. In a few words, I guess all I could really say about it is this.

Hunters are terrifying.

 _Something wrong, Vas? ,_ Asked Ozpin, breaking me out of my thoughts, _You've been awfully quiet._

'Sorry,' I thought to Ozpin, 'I was just thinking about hunters compared to people from Earth.'

 _Ah,_ Acknowledged Ozpin, _What specifically about them?_

'Well, mostly about how vast the difference in capabilities is.'

 _Aura is a massive game changer between a hunter and the common civilian._

'Common civilian?', I echoed as I entered the dining hall, 'I thought you said everyone had aura?'

 _They do, but full access to one's aura is far less widely spread. Usually it must be released by someone who has full access to their own aura, but sometimes strong enough emotions can force one's aura to manifest._

I nodded in understanding as I gazed across the dining hall. A few students were seated at some of the tables, some sitting together with their teammates and/or out-of-team friend, while the odd few were sitting alone in peace and quiet. It also didn't take long for a loud, boisterous, and familiar laugh to ring out across the background noise of the students, immediately drawing my attention towards its source.

Peter Port was many things, but quiet certainly wasn't one of them.

I began making my way over, snagging a pair of bagels off of an arrangement of various foods for the students and teachers. I swear, I'm living off of these bagels.

Now where was I? Oh yeah, Peter.

As I made my way over to him, I began thinking of how I could describe him. He is an older man, short, pudgy, and he had a big bushy moustache and a pair of large eyebrows above seemingly permanently closed eyes. His outfit honestly reminded me of one of those older and fancier hunting outfits crossed with a military uniform. It consisted of a red buttoned up suit jacket trimmed with gold and brown pants tucked into knee-high black boots.

"Aha," exclaimed Peter's voice suddenly, "Ozpin! How nice of you to join us, friend."

My mind snapped back into reality and focused on the people in front of me. Sitting in front of me at the table was Peter, sitting across from him was Oobleck, and sitting a few spaces down from Oobleck was a student by the name of Velvet Scarlatina.

Velvet was a rabbit faunus with long brown hair, pale skin, and brown eyes. She was currently wearing Beacon's uniform, which consisted of a white blouse, under a brown vest, with a brown and gold jacket over top, a plaid red skirt, and black leggings.

I swear, there must be some cultural thing about always wearing several layers of clothes that Ozpin hasn't told me about, but anyways…

Velvet is a rather shy person, but mostly around new people, understandable considering she's a faunus. She doesn't have very many friends outside of her team, who all went elsewhere when last semester ended, but she apparently feels right at home conversing with the Beacon staff, not that I can blame her, even I started enjoying their company after I stopped being so on edge about acting as Ozpin. Heck, some students get into rather nice conversations with the staff all the time, so I doubt anyone questioned it really.

Deciding it would probably be best to respond to Peter, I did so with a smile, "And it's always a pleasure to join you, Peter. And how might your days be going so far?"

I sat down next to Peter, across from Velvet and Oobleck as they all gave positive responses to my question in their own ways.

"Professor Oobleck was just telling a story about the mouse Professor Port keeps locked away in his class room." said Velvet, looking like she was trying to keep herself from laughing out loud.

Peter keeps a mouse in his office?

"Aren't you afraid of mice, Peter?" I questioned, looking over at the man.

Peter pointed a finger out and waved it at the three of us, speaking in a semi-serious tone, "Edgar is in there for your safety!"

 _...He named it Edgar?_ , questioned Ozpin rhetorically, a bit of amusement leaking into his voice.

Oobleck let out a small laugh at his friend's phobia "And what are we being kept safe from, Peter?"

"Mice are nothing but breeders of disease and famine!" bellowed Peter, sending Velvet into a fit of poorly concealed giggles.

I let out a few chuckles myself, before letting out a silent sigh to myself. Their company was enjoyable, but always made me feel like an intruder, they were Ozpin's friends, not mine, after all.

It didn't feel right. Not at all.

I had brought up the issue with Ozpin, but, while he did try to alleviate my worries about it, we both knew it couldn't be helped.

I was once again knocked back into reality when Ozpin's pho-, I mean, 'scroll' vibrated. The scroll's vibration settings were set as high as they could go since Ozpin had always gotten so involved with work that Glynda made him keep it turned up. Which also meant everyone at the table heard it meaning I was now the center of attention.

"Is duty calling, Ozpin?", Asked Oobleck, somehow managing to sound disappointed and amused at the same time.

I pulled Ozpin's scroll out of one of my pockets as I replied, "We'll see."

I opened up Ozpin's messages and tapped on the highlighted message inside.

It was another application for Beacon Academy for a young woman by the name of Blake Belladonna.

'Huh,' I thought to Ozpin, 'Isn't this pretty late for an application?'

 _While almost everyone has their transcripts sent over by previously attended combat schools, there are some that apply of their own accord,_ replied Ozpin before he tagged on, _like Mister Arc for example and applications are accepted up until the start of a semester._

'I see. So what should we do with this?'

 _While it isn't unheard of, it is questionable to receive an application this late._

I gave the transcript a few looks over. All the information seemed in order, nothing too outlandish. She apparently hadn't attended a formal combat school.

 _Who sent the application?_

I gave the scroll a quick look and read a name off of the sender tab, 'Some guy named Tukson.'

That name seemed to ring a bell with Ozpin, since he made a thoughtful hum.

'You know this guy?'

I could feel him nod as he spoke once more, _Tukson is an ex-White Fang member that has taken refuge in Vale, he owns a bookstore._

'Ex-White Fang? As in the terrorist group White Fang?'

Ozpin nodded, _The very same, but this application came from him, so that would mean…?_

I finished where Ozpin was leading my thoughts, '...That she's probably also Ex-White Fang and went to him for help.'

 _Precisely, what do you say to a house call?_

'I say it's about time I saw Vale.'

I stood up and looked at the three people sitting around me, "My apologies, but it seems I have something to attend to in Vale."

"I guess we'll see you when you return, friend." said Peter as he and the others bid their goodbyes.

Half an hour later, I found myself inside of Ozpin's personal quarters. The room was pretty simple, decently sized, and contained various shades of green. Ozpin never really used this area since he always sleeps in his office, but it was where he kept most of his things anyways, plus it was still in good condition with no dust (the non-magical kind) or clutter.

Me and Ozpin had thought it to be a good idea if we altered his outfit a little to disguise ourselves before we went out considering he was so important in Vale. We didn't want to get sidetracked by people on the way to our unannounced visit to Tukson's bookstore.

I took off Ozpin's pin and scarf, laying them on the bed in the center of the room before taking off his suit jacket, folding it and placing it next to the pin and scarf. We had decided that all we really needed to alter was the outer top layer of Ozpin's outfit, so that left me in a green button up shirt, a black vest, dark green pants and black dress shoes.

I opened up a closet in the corner of the room. On the racks inside were various copies of Ozpin's usual outfit along with a few different outfits. I found always found it odd that all the clothes followed the same color scheme of various shades of green and black.

After a few moments of shuffling around through the clothes, I stepped back, took a jacket with me, and slipped it on while walking over to a mirror in the room.

I patted the sides of the jacket slightly as I gazed in the mirror to inspect it. The jacket was dark green, with two breast pockets, two normal pockets, and, after closer inspection, the jacket had another pocket on the inside of it. I had somehow managed to get the hood stuffed between my back and the inside of the jacket, so I untucked it from inside the jacket.

"You know, it's funny how just changing one piece of your outfit makes you look more casual."

 _Surprising indeed, now there should be a pair of gloves in the bedside table._

I nodded and walked over to the bedside table and opened it up. After moving some things around I finally found a pair of black gloves and slipped them on. I rubbed the gloves together slightly and went to exit, grabbing Ozpin's cane on the way.

"Is there any way we can take this without it being recognized immediately?"

 _Press near where the handle meets the cane, it collapses into the handle._

I did as he asked and pressed near the handle and, low and behold, the cane portion just pulled it's way into the handle.

"...How does that even work?"

 _It'd take too long to explain, we should get going._

I nodded, pulled the hood of the jacket up, and one lengthy bullhead ride later, I was standing in Vale.

Vale looked like your average city for the most part, but with a few higher tech things dotting the area here and there. Honestly all I really noticed were the holographic traffic lights and street lights dotting the area.

It was a pretty simple looking city actually, it also didn't take long at all to find 'Tukson's Book Trade'. All I really had to do was ask someone for the 'bookstore', they didn't have very many of those apparently, and they pointed the way pretty easily. The store was rather nice looking, especially so considering how faunus aren't exactly looked upon in the best of lights. I pushed the door open and entered, a bell chiming above the door alert the store owner.

"Be there in a minute!" called a voice from the back, "Go ahead and take look around!"

Well...don't mind if I do.

I pushed my hood down and began to peruse the shelves of books, seeing things like romance novels, adventure stories, fairy tales, and even a few comic books here and there.

 _He has quite the collection, I see why he chose the catchphrase now._

I hummed in agreement as I plucked a book that caught my eye off of the shelf.

"'The Darkness of Remnant', huh?" I said as I flipped through the book and skimmed some of the pages.

Nevermore, Deathstalker, Beowolf, Ursa. Oh, I get it now, this is a bestiary for grimm.

 _This book seems quite extensive, maybe we should buy it before we leave?_

I chuckled, before saying jokingly, "Why? Don't have it in your personal library?"

 _As a matter of fact, I don't._

I smiled, but before I could think of another response, I suddenly felt a presence behind me, prompting me to turn around to face it.

Standing behind the counter was a rather well-built man with hazel colored eyes, black hair, and the biggest pair of sideburns I've ever seen. He had on a short sleeved black and burgundy shirt and a pair of black pants.

He looked extremely caught off guard by my, or should I say Ozpin's, presence. His eyes were a fraction wider than they should be and he looked momentarily frozen on the spot before he cleared his throat and composed himself.

"Professor Ozpin!" He said in greeting, "What brings you all the way here?"

There's no way he doesn't know.

"Well I received a message earlier today about a late applicant to Beacon Academy, a message sent by you," I started as he began rubbing the back of his head sheepishly, "My day was free so I thought I would make a trip to Vale to meet this potential student."

"Ah…," He started, "Well, I guess I can't stop you at this point, follow me."

He opened up the doors behind the counter and waved me over, leading me back into what I assumed was his storage area for books.

And, by whatever gods there are on this world, was I right. There were a ton of books back here, he probably could have started up a small library instead of a bookstore with this many books. Tall wooden shelves filled the first room we entered, each one filled to the brim with books, books, and more books. Surprisingly, the room was rather clean, not much dust anywhere and all the books were in pristine condition.

"You seem to be doing quite well for yourself, Tukson."

He had relaxed considerably by now as he replied, "Well, lots of people are interested in stories of all kinds here, be them fact or fiction. There are a few lulls in business traffic here and there, but it's good work."

This guy really loves his job.

 _Maybe we should get back to the point, Vas?,_ suggested Ozpin.

'Right, probably a good idea.'

"So, Tukson, what can you tell me about Miss Belladonna?"

"About Blake? Well," he stopped and hummed lightly in thought, "She defected from the White Fang, she means well, she's quiet, sometimes too quiet, and for some reason her first idea after defecting was to come to me for help and apply to Beacon."

"I see," I said as I nodded in understanding, "But why come to you?"

"Before I defected from the Fang, I forged documents for our field operatives. She was hoping i would do the same, since she had no real documentation in these parts."

"Then how much of her information is true?"

"Well most of it is, all I really changed about it was her race, since she wanted to keep her faunus heritage a secret."

He began walking again leading me through a pair of doors to a side room that I could only assume led to a more residential portion of the store

The door led us up a flight of stairs and into a more...homely area. The interior was mostly wooden and simple, a painting hanging here and there, a vase set in a corner off to the end of the hallway, a window covered by curtains let just a bit of light streak into the otherwise dimly lit space.

Tukson turned a corner suddenly, leading us into what seemed to be a kitchen. Before I could step in, however, he stopped me with a gesture of his hand.

"I think it's best if I introduce you rather than just let you waltz in out of seemingly nowhere, she's paranoid enough as is."

I held up my hands in the universal sign of relent/surrender and nodded in understanding.

It was perfectly reasonable for her to be paranoid, not many people could just defect from a terrorist organization like the White Fang without feeling like they'd be hunted and found at any moment.

As Tukson went inside the kitchen, I just leaned against the wall and waited. It didn't take long for the sounds of conversation to start up and I tried to focus on anything but whatever Tukson was talking about with, who I could only assume to be, Blake.

Privacy and all that.

 _So what do you intend to say to her?_

'Me? She's your potential student, why do I have to think of something?'

 _As long as you are in control of my body, she's your potential student just as much as she is mine._

I sighed, 'Yeah, I guess you're right.'

Tukson chose that moment to come back out of the kitchen, "Alright Professor, she's ready to see you."

I pushed myself away from the wall I was leaning on, but before I went anywhere, I reached into one of my jacket pockets and pulled out Ozpin's scroll.

"We don't need any interruptions." I explained to Tukson when he gave me a questioning look as I turned the scroll on silent and slipped it back into my pocket.

Tukson then nodded and led me into the kitchen. I guess it was as good a place as any to meet. A fridge was off in one corner, a long counter resting beside it and extending to the opposite corner, various cabinets lined the space above the counter, a sink was settled near the middle with a window hanging above it, and in the middle of the room was a table with four chairs, one of which, was occupied by Blake Belladonna.

She had a book resting next to her on the table. Guess she usually read in here. She had long black hair, amber eyes with purple eye-shadow surrounding them, and pale skin. Her attire was probably the most elaborate I'd seen so far. I can't really describe it very well, aside from it was a mixture of black, white, and purple.

"Blake, this is Professor Ozpin. Professor, this is Blake." Said Tukson, introducing us.

Blake seemed very...guarded. To say the least.

"It's nice to meet you." she said, but her tone was so cautious that it almost came out sounding like a question.

'This is just going to go great,' I thought to Ozpin, 'I can just feel tension everywhere.'

Ozpin let out a slight chuckle, _Well, try and keep it together, Vas. We've already come this far._

"It's always a pleasure to meet one of the Academy's applicants, Miss Belladonna," I said, debatably being a bit too formal.

Tukson had already sat down in the chair to Blake's left, so I took that as a sign to sit down as well.

Sitting across from Blake made this situation feel a lot more uncomfortable to me. In Beacon, everyone knew Ozpin was trustworthy and had known him for at least some time, but Blake had never met Ozpin, which meant I could potentially mess up the first impressions.

She wasn't showing it, but somehow I could feel she was nervous too.

"I don't mean to be rude," started Blake, "But why are you here?"

"Well," I started, "Considering your past allegiances, I thought it prudent to make sure I wouldn't be making a mistake by accepting you into my school."

"That's...reasonable."

"I certainly thought so," I said as I nodded and Ozpin began telling me questions to ask, "So, Miss Belladonna, why did you leave the White Fang?"

She seemed a little surprised by how fast I got to the point. She blinked a few times before she let out a breath.

"I don't think I need to tell you of all people how far the Fang has fallen," She said, a more depressed tone leaking into her voice, "I couldn't stand it anymore, so I left."

Simple question, simple answer. Alright then.

"Why come to Beacon?" I questioned, "Surely the other academy's would have been just as good as a choice?"

"Well," She said, pausing to think out her response, "Shade isn't in the best of environments, Atlas is too military oriented, and Haven is too far away."

"Seems you thought this out pretty well," I smiled in amusement, interlocking my fingers and resting my elbows on the table, "But, according to your application, you've never had any formal combat training, could you explain that for me?"

"While I may not have had formal combat instruction, I have learned a lot in my time in the White Fang."

"I see," I stated, "How can I be sure your presence will not be danger to the academy and it's students?"

"I can assure you," She said confidently, "Anybody searching for me from the Fang has no idea where I am, I even spent a few weeks laying low to make sure of it."

I nodded, finding that answer to be good enough as Ozpin told me his final question, "So, Blake, why do you want to be a huntress?"

"E-excuse me?" She stuttered.

She must not have been ready to answer that question.

"There are a lot of things you could have done after leaving the Fang, I'm sure you could have found something to move on to other than being a huntress," I said, taking a breath, "So, Miss Belladonna, why do you want to be a huntress?"

"Well…," started Blake, choosing her words carefully, "Hunter's are symbols of peace and justice in Remnant, people look towards them for hope and help, and there's too much wrong with this world to just stand idly by. I want to be a hunter, so I can make a difference."

'Admirable reason, I'll admit.' I said to Ozpin.

 _Indeed, not many people her age have such an understanding of this world's darkness._

I nodded and stood up from the table, "I think I've heard everything I need to hear."

"You have?" Blake and Tukson said in unison.

Oh yeah, Tukson was still here.

Ozpin's decision was obvious though, he probably made up his mind the moment we were in the same room with her.

"Correct," I said, a smile making it's way to my face, "Beacon Academy would be more than happy to welcome you into it's halls, Miss Belladonna."

I didn't think it was possible from our brief interaction, but Blake actually allowed a smile to cross her face as she nodded, "Thank you, Professor. You won't regret this, I promise."

"I held no belief that I would. Remember, the semester is starting within a few months, I'll be seeing you then."

"I'll look forward to it, Professor."

"Here," said Tukson as he stood up too, "Let me lead you out."

I followed Tukson back to the storefront. When we got back he started talking once more, "Blake's a good kid, I'm glad you decided to accept her."

"No need to tell me that, it was my pleasure to accept her."

It was at that moment that I remembered I was still holding onto that Grimm bestiary book.

I placed it on the counter and looked to Tukson, "Before I leave though, I'd like to buy this book."

One purchase later and I was once more standing outside of Tukson's Book Trade.

"Well that was easier than I thought it would be."

 _It went quite well, good job, Vas._

"You were the one telling me what to ask."

 _You may have asked my questions, but everything else was all you._

I chose that moment to pull out Ozpin's scroll and check for any missed messages, "Yeah, I guess you're right."

Let's see here. We did miss a message after all.

I opened up the message and was immediately confused.

'Huh?'

 _Oh no…_

The message was from some guy named Qrow and Ozpin now sounded worried.

The message only contained five words within it.

 **Autumn's coming early this year.**

* * *

 **A/N: Dun-dun-dun. The plot thickens.**


End file.
